Morning journal and courier., 1887-12-22
News by Telegraph FROM ALL QUARTERS. ROCHESTER, SHAKEN UP. Streets Torn Up By Sewer
 Explosions, MANY FLOUR MILLS ON FIRE. The Haytien Coast StreWn
 With Wrecks.
4 GREAT RUN AT BILLIARDS.
Ammonia To Take The
 Place Of Ice.
A SERIES OF EXPLOSIONS.

Naptha Gets Into the Sewers of Roch- ester and Gives the City a Lively Shaking Up-Severa1 Flour Mills Set OH Fire and 8 Scene of Terror Ensues. 1 ROCHESTER, Dec 21.-A terrific explosion occurred in front of the Poole -four mill on
 Mill street at the foot of Factory street short ! lv before 3:3O D. m. A few seconds after another followed and then others in rapid
 succession. Instantly flames burst from the
 Poole mill and the rear walls fell in. The
 fire burned with great fury, and although the
 workmen hastened to get out it is feared that
 some must have perished in the flames. In
 8 few minutes the Washington mill, adjoin-
 ing the burning structure, was also on fire.
 One of the workmen jumped from the third
 story of the Poole mill and was severely in-
 iured. Another escaped by jumping into
 the race. The cause of the explosion was
 that the sewers in the vicinity were filled
 with naptha. To-day fourteen thousand
 gallons of naptha were pumped from the
 Vacuum oil works through the pipe line in
 the bed of the old canal. It was intended
 for the Municipal Gas company, but one or
 more breaks in the line allowed the naptha
 to escape into the adjoining sewers. When
 the sewers became surcharged with the gas it
 
 elsewhere and made it's way through the
 mains in the middle of the streets, throwing
 out the manhole covers and tearing the road ways. In the vicinity of the fire and up Mill and State streets as far as Market street, distance of about three-quarters of mile, people were driven in every direction, terrified by the explosions. These ex- plosions continued at such frequent intervals for the first half hour that no one could approach the fire. Women and children were running around crying and screaming, thinking their brothers, hus- bands and other relatives were in the mill and had been burned. It is not known how many persous were at work or how many escaped One man was seen to jump from a second story window of one of the buildings to the river bank below, distance of fifty feet. His right leg was broken and he re- ceived severe internal m uries. The walls of l the Jefferson mill fell in about 4 o'clock and 1 it is feared there are several men buried. | The engineer of the Clinton mill with two | companions were Standing near the front of | the mill when the explosion occurred. They | retained sufficient presence of mind to shut 1 off the steam and get out of the mill There l were six persons at work in the Clinton mill, | four of whom escaped through the water l wheel.
 At this time, 11:3O p. m., the fire is under | control, but the fremen will keep at work at | least until morning. The explosions ceased
 
 ed from them. The explosions covered wide extent of territory. Manholes over sewers in Mill, Platt, State, West, Main, Fremont, Smith, Jay, Furnace, Factory, Brown and other streets were blown of by the force of the explosion and great deal of paving around them was torn up. Windows were shattered in many buildings in the vii cinity and the shock was felt over a large area of territory. The funnel through which the burning naptha flowed for several hours is the largest sewer in the city and is the outlet for the sewers on the west side. How badly damaged this is cannot be estimated. The fire must have eItended distance of several hundred feet in the sewer. The total damage by fire cannot be closely determined. The Washington mill was valued at $70, 900, insurance about $35, ,000. The Jefferson mill with it's contents was valued at S60, 900, insurance $55, ,000 The Clinton mill alone was valued at $65, ,000, insurance $20,- poo. The Clinton mill was fairly loaded with barrels of four and grain in stock. The value of this is estimated at from $12, ,O0O to s15, ,000. The Washington mill contained about fifteen hundred barrels of four and tour thousand bushels of wheat. This was valued at $10,000 and is mostly total loss.
 At midnight it is believed four persons were killed in all These are Fred Wilson, Edward A. Webster, Abram Rogers and John Lee. The latter was employed in the Clinton mill and is missing. It is supposed he was burned to death. Rogers was a mill wright and was injured by falling walls. He WAS taken home and died tonight. Young Wilson was @ part owner in the Shawmut mills and was killed by a flying stone. Webster was looking at 8 manhole from which the ex- plosions were coming when the walls of the Jefferson mill fell on him. He was picked up with leg and arm broken and internal injuries died in the City hospital. The in- iured will number at least 20 The most of | them are bruised and cut by stones.